Stepmothers Are Not Always Evil

Chapter 83 “No. Even when you are young, you need to know. Isn’t that right, Fred?”“Huh? Cough, yes. Mother, you are right.”Prince Frederick, who was chewing the steak, answered with a cough.The Empress asked, staring at Prince Frederick with lovely eyes.“Then, Fred, what do you think we should do?”Frederick stopped his fork at the unexpected question.“Empress, serious talk can wait until later…”“No, Your Majesty. Important things can happen even during a meal, so why not prepare in advance? Right, Fred?”“Y-yes, Mother is right.”“So, do you have any suggestions?”Sirius clenched his chin and asked. Prince Frederick, who was now under a barrage of expectant glances from Sirius, was at a loss for words.“W-we need to concentrate our troops in the places where the monsters are most likely to appear, and increase our vigilance.”“Where do you get your troops?”“Uh, wouldn’t it be better to summon the defenders of each territory?”“If you call out defenders, who will protect the territory?”“That… if they recruit more soldiers and organize their own….”“And who will do the farming?”“Ah…”Prince Frederick’s face widened as he continued to answer the barrage of questions in what felt like a pressure interview.The Emperor coughed and interrupted.“Hmm, I wish there was an answer, but that’s not the case, so that’s a problem. In the end, it doesn’t matter where you put your priorities.”“You are the one who sets those priorities, so you should be careful what you say.”“You’re right. That’s what makes the Emperor’s position so difficult.”The Emperor chuckled and agreed.I glanced back and forth between Prince Frederick, whose head was bowed deeply, and the Empress, who was trying to smile.It must have been the intention to show off the Prince’s cleverness, but unfortunately, the Prince did not seem to be very clever.“Our Fred has only read books, so he is still inexperienced. After the Crown Prince’s ceremonies are over, he will learn one by one. right?”“Yes, mother.”In the end, Prince Frederick, who put down his fork, looked at the Empress and answered.He hadn’t even touched the soup in his bowl.Poor Prince, let him eat in peace.Grand Duchess Crawford, watching, spoke.“Your Majesty is in good health, so we can fill in the gaps gradually. Rather, I am more concerned about the Prince’s delayed marriage.”“I’ve been looking, but there are no suitable matches.”In response to the Empress’s reply, Grand Duchess Crawford looked at Sirius.“There are no suitable young ladies in the kingdom?”“As far as I can tell, most of them are either older than your highness or not worthy.”“Aren’t there any ladies to marry the prince?”“I don’t know much about royal affairs, sister, as I only travel outside the city.”“Tsk.”Grand Duchess Crawford clicked her tongue and continued.“The last engagement with the kingdom was 30 years ago, so we need to renew the engagement before it is too late to promote the stability of the imperial family.”“Your sister is right, but finding a married woman is not as easy as it sounds.”“It must be done, even if it is difficult. If the imperial family is shaken, so will the Empire.”“I know.”The Emperor replied quietly, his gaze turning to Escal.Something about this… gives me a really bad feeling. ***** After-dinner tea was served in the drawing room.The aroma of herbal tea with peppermint stimulated the tip of the tongue.The conversation, which had been tedious because of worries about the future of the imperial family, entered a lull for a moment.We wished we could get home sooner, but Grand Duchess Crawford seemed unwilling to let us go.“… The cooperation of the nobles is essential for this…”“That’s right, but at the aristocrat….”“If the Duke Anthemion uses his power…”I picked up a Madeleine and held it in Escal’s hand, letting out the sound of words that spread through the parlor.He took it without protest, even though he had already devoured five madeleines.“Are they good?”“Yes. I think Tia will like it…”Aah. Escal’s eyes lowered, as if he knew instinctively that he shouldn’t mention Tia.I patted the child on the back and whispered.“When we get home, mom will make a lot of them. Let’s eat together with Tia.”“Yes.”Escal’s eyebrows curled roundly.“Father, can I play the piano?”While the adults were having a conversation, the princess, who was walking around the drawing room, pointed to the piano on one side of the drawing room and asked.The upholstered piano appeared untouched for a long time.“Yeah, give it a try.”The Emperor nodded approvingly, and the servants removed the piano’s cover.Princess Adela, who was sitting on the piano chair, simply released her hands and began to play the keys.A small hand ran smoothly over the keyboard.The old piano didn’t sound very good, but the performance was still great.While listening to the beautiful melody that even the servants would sneak up and eavesdrop, she suddenly looked at Escal.Escal was not interested in playing the piano, only in fiddling with Madeleine, playing with his feet.‘He’s not interested.’Perhaps because he had bad memories with Princess Adela, he didn’t seem interested at all today.“Wow.”When the performance was over, the servants who were watching the performance burst into exclamation.When Princess Adela got off the chair and greeted them by raising her skirt, the Emperor and the Empress applauded.“I heard it, Your Majesty. The princess’s skills are amazing.”Sirius, who watched the performance, said with a smile.“They say she’s a good dancer, just like the Empress.”“I should look forward to the princess’s debut.”“Would you like to have a chance to see the dance before that?”Archduke Crawford glanced at Escal.Looking at it, it seemed to know for sure what the reason for calling us was.‘What are you going to say to a six-year-old?’Of course, even if she were sixteen instead of six, I had no intention of accepting an engagement with Princess Adela.At the same time I promised myself that I would never accept it.“Duke Anthemion, I have something to say to the Duke.”As soon as the Emperor’s words fell, the Empress lightly tapped the back of the first princess sitting next to her.“Viola, why don’t you go out into the garden and play for a while.”“Yes.”The first princess who answered gently gave the Prince and Princess Adela a look to go out and spoke to Escal.“Let’s go together.”“Uh? Yes….”“Come on.”Princess Viola grabbed Escal’s hesitant hand and led him outside.As the children went out into the garden, the Emperor opened his mouth.“Duke, can I ask you one favor?” ***** After being captured by Princess Viola, Escal was dragged into the middle of the garden.Setting Escal down near a fountain of crystal clear water, Princess Viola beckoned to Adela, who was following.“Adela, come here.”When Princess Adela approached with a crouch, Princess Viola spoke with a firm voice.“Apologize to him.”“…..”Huh?Escal, who was avoiding her gaze at the unexpected words, raised his head.Princess Adela, who bit her lip, opened her mouth with difficulty.“I think I misunderstood. I thought what Brother Gail was saying was true…”“Is that an apology?”Princess Viola raised her eyebrows.As Adela shrugged, Prince Frederick gently tapped his youngest sister’s shoulder.“Adela, don’t say too much and say you’re sorry.”“That- I-I’m sorry.”Adela’s voice was muffled by the sound of the fountain.Escal bit his lip and stared at her through the water. ‘The person who came with you is not your real mother?’‘Your father said he hates you, so it seems true.’ “… It’s okay.”He was still upset when he remembered what he had heard from Adela, but Escal resolutely accepted the apology.Adela rolled her eyes.“Are you sure you’re okay?”“Of course I’m fine, I’m just saying.”“Leave her alone! Why are you making a scene?”“Adela, what’s with the apologetic attitude?”Frederick again pointed at Adela seriously.“… Thank you for apologizing. I was really sorry about that.”“No.”Princess Viola smiled and messed up Escal’s hair.“For a little boy you are very mature. How old are you?”“S-six years old.”“Two years younger than Adela?”“What does age have to do with it? Mother is four years older than Father.”“Well, family is more important than age.”… What do you mean?Escal, who had listened to the passing words, narrowed his eyes.“But you are very handsome. You look just like Duke Anthemion.”“…..”“If you were three years older, I’d be staring at you.”“Viola.”Prince Frederick furrowed his eyebrows and called out to his sister.“Why? if she were a girl, you’d come after her, too.”“Watch your tongue.”“It’s okay, little boy.”Adela doesn’t know, but what does he know?Viola tapped Escal’s shoulder as if nothing had happened.“Anyway, I think we’ll see each other often in the future, so please take care of us.”